GM will build 7,000 Solstices this year

[Northstar]

GM will build 7,000 Solstices this year
Pontiac has 13,000 orders; Del. plant will speed up line

By Jamie LaReau
Automotive News / September 05, 2005

http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=54368

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Nearly half of the customers who have ordered the new Pontiac Solstice won't get the roadster until next year.

General Motors expects to build 7,000 units this year, Lori Queen, GM's vehicle line executive for small cars, said at a press event here. GM has 13,000 orders for the car.

Queen says production should speed up in the next 30 days. Solstice production started in mid-July at GM's Wilmington, Del., plant. The automaker had built 1,840 units through Thursday, Sept. 1.

"Now that we're building in higher volumes than we did in the early, early phases, we're seeing bottlenecks and areas that aren't building as smoothly as you'd like them to build," Queen said.

Initial problems with roof leakage and front-end fit are fixed, though.

Pontiac debuted the car on the April 14 episode of NBC's "The Apprentice" TV show. During that show, 1,000 customers placed orders for special versions of the car. Queen said about 750 of the "Apprentice" orders have been filled.

The Solstice is the first vehicle on GM's new rear-wheel-drive Kappa architecture.

GM uses the term "architecture" to signify a common set of components, performance characteristics, a common manufacturing process, a range of dimensions and connecting points for key component systems.

GM has said it developed the Kappa vehicles to be profitable at low volumes by using existing GM parts and innovative production.

For example, the company set up a small body-shop module rather than a mainstream automated body shop. The car's chassis and underbody are hand-welded.

"If you want to do more volume, you have to put in more modules for the body shop," Queen says, adding that GM doesn't intend to do that.

GM will build the Solstice and eventually the Saturn Sky roadsters on Kappa architecture, producing between 20,000 to 30,000 of the two cars annually, she said.

Pontiac Marketing Director Mark-Hans Richer said from 17,000 to 18,000 of those cars could be Solstices. GM also will produce a Kappa roadster for its European brand, Opel, in Wilmington.

[jbartley]

underpromise.....and....OVERDELIVER! that's the toyohandissan way!

[Cadillacfan]

I don't think GM intentionally made too few Solstices on purpose. Hydroforming of the body panels is a lengthy process and unless GM diverts more man hours and factory space to the solstice, they'll keep the same pace.

[axlon]

I don't think GM intentionally made too few Solstices on purpose.  Hydroforming of the body panels is a lengthy process and unless GM diverts more man hours and factory space to the solstice, they'll keep the same pace.

[post="10980"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

It's good that they keep an eye on quality. Fiero sold over 100,000 in its first year but quality problems tarnished it. I don't think they will make the same mistake twice. B)

[Imaj]

GM didn't have that much success for a long time.. WAY TO GO GM..

[The O.C.]

GM will build 7,000 Solstices this year
Pontiac has 13,000 orders; Del. plant will speed up line

By Jamie LaReau
Automotive News / September 05, 2005

http://www.autonews.com/article.cms?articleId=54368

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Nearly half of the customers who have ordered the new Pontiac Solstice won't get the roadster until next year.

General Motors expects to build 7,000 units this year, Lori Queen, GM's vehicle line executive for small cars, said at a press event here. GM has 13,000 orders for the car.

[post="9589"]<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post]

I LOVE it how manufacturers try to "brag" about having "13,000" orders for a new car. They don't have 13,000 customer orders for Solstice, they have 13,000 dealer orders from dealers that have been allocated Solstices and have consensed to the allocation numbers that GM has given them......

I worked for GM and Buick.....and we did this bragging "trick" all the time. We'd take a slow-selling Buick, "force" the dealers to take a BUNCH of them on allocation, in some cases "dumping" orders on the dealers....then we'd "claim" that we had all these "orders" for our product implying that demand was far greater than realized.....

Not to say Solstice won't be a big hit though....it should be....

[Angry Dad]

Has anybody seen any review or that dreaded fabricated word "comparo" where the Miata is the clear winner? What seems to be the biggest shock is that the Solstice has taken all the press. It may not be the better car in all regards but I defy anybody on these boards to tell me or anybody else how if the two are parked side by side, the Miata simply becomes invisible. Pontiac now owns the "buzz". Who'd a thought GM could pull it off.